Putting together an overall record of 362-294-7 The Rock finished an all time high of second at the 1971 NCAA Division II championships, followed up by a fourth place finish in 1972. At the NCAA Division I level, The Rock had four top twenty performances including a tenth place finish in 1974.
At the conference level, Slippery Rock won the Eastern Regional championships on five occasions, including winning a title in their final season of 2006. This also included six runner-up finishes & three third place finishes. Keep in mind that at one time the Eastern Regional had as many as 23 teams.
If indeed Slippery Rock wrestling is reinstated at the varsity level, they will be at the NCAA Division II level. I think for the program & the area that will be great. I can see the Rock quickly getting to the status that they enjoyed during the early 1970's.
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| Stan Dziedzic 150, 158 lbs |
Putting together a career record of 116-2, Dziedzic was a six time All American for the The Rock, earning a total of four NCAA titles. He won three at the NCAA Division II level in 1970, 1971 & 1972 & one at the NCAA Division I level in 1971. His only collegiate losses took place at the NCAA Division I nationals where he finished third in 1970 & as the runner-up in 1972.
Post College Dziedzic had an outstanding international career earning the Bronze at the 1976 Olympics & a Gold at the 1977 World Championships.
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| Bill Schellhorn 167 lbs |
Schellhorn was a two time NCAA Division II All American earning a fifth place finish in 1970 & a third place finish in 1971.
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| Rod Irwin 134 lbs |
A graduate of McDowell High School Irwin earned a NCAA Division I All American status with a fourth place finish in 1971, before capping off his career with a championship in 1972.
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| Tom Cox 142 lbs |
Cox was a NCAA Division II runner-up for the The Rock in 1971.
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| Jack Spates 118 lbs |
Spates had an outstanding career for The Rock, winning the 1973 NCAA Division II championships as a sophomore. He followed it up by making the NCAA Division I finals in 1974 as a junior. His senior season he entered the NCAA championships with a 37-0 record as the #1 seed but was upset twice in route to finishing one match shy of All American honors.
Post college, Spates went on to have tremendous success at the coaching level. He coached at Pittsburgh, Army & Cornell before seeing his longest tenure at Oklahoma. Their he lead the Sooners to various top finishes including bringing home top four team trophies on six occasions.
Today his son Jeremy is the head coach at Southern Illinois Edwardsville.
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| Gene Costello 142 lbs |
A three time NCAA qualifier for the Rock, Costello made the NCAA finals in 1976.
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| Mike Waller 150 lbs |
Waller won an East Regional title & followed it up with a fifth place showing at the NCAA championships in 1974.
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| Bill Shuffstall 177 lbs |
Putting together a career record of 94-28, Shuffstall won an Eastern Regional title in 1974 & followed it up by making All American status in 1975 with a sixth place finish at the NCAA championships.
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| Tony Calderaio 118 lbs |
A graduate of Boca Roaton High School in Florida, Calderaio was the Rock's first four time Eastern Regional champion winning titles in 80', 81', 82' & 83'. Along with these accomplishments he earned All American honors twice, placing eighth in 1981 & sixth in 1983. He graduated having accumulated 140 victories.
Post college Calderaio opened up & ran a restoration business that restored classic cars.
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| Jack Bell 134, 142 lbs |
A graduate of Kane High School, Bell was a four time NCAA qualifier, earning two Eastern Regional titles between 1987 & 1991.
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| Derek DelPorto 177 lbs, HWT |
A three time Eastern Regional Champion, DelPorto put together a career record of 116-38 becoming The Rock's final All American with an eighth place finish at the 1999 NCAA championships. That season he also placed eighth at the Midlands championships.
Post college he took over the Slippery Rock program & in their final season led the Rock to the team title at the Eastern Regional. He also coached at Eastern Michigan University (a program that was cut in recent years.)
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| Doug Cieleski 157, 165 lbs |
A two time Eastern Regional champion in 2000 & 2001, Cieleski qualified for three NCAA championships.
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| Chris Elliott 142, 149 lbs |
A graduate of Hermitage High school, Chris Elliott at first decided that collegiate wrestling wasn't for him when he joined the Navy after graduation. Yet four years later, he used his G.I. bill to go to college & found himself back on the wrestling mat. Winning an Eastern Regional title in 1997, he would finish as the runner up in 1998 & 1999. He later became the head coach at James Madison (another program we have lost.)
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| Brad Cieleski 149, 157 lbs |
Cieleski had an excellent career for The Rock earning three NCAA qualifications & two Eastern Regional titles. He transferred to the University of Missouri for his final year of eligibility where he qualified for this fourth NCAA tournament appearance, graduating with over 100 career victories.
Here's to hopefully soon saying Restored, Reinstated, Rejoice!!! My fingers are crossed & I'm excited to see Slippery Rock back in action!!!
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